the ugly american is alive and well

well, it's over... no recount in ohio is going to save sanity for this nation... not with bush winning the popular count by over four million votes... and this morning, every moderately sane person is asking themselves the same question: what now?

judging by the way the votes went in the senate, there's a pretty simple answer - more of the same... expansion of the patriot act (hence, the further erosion of what civil rights we have left), drilling for a miniscule amount of oil in alaska (hence, furthering the cause of ecological disaster), continuation of an unwinnable war in iraq, as well as probably a new one in iran, continuing loss of stature and respect in the world at large, and finally the eventual triumph of fear.

this is what the majority of american citizens want. they've just said so.

and now the republicans are calling for a deeply divided nation to "come together" to work all these problems they created (or exacerbated) out... in good conscience, i simply can't do that... i can't join in a government that propogates fear and prejudice, regardless if the majority of the people i live with think it's a good idea... so i find myself where i was back in the hell of the reagan years - slinking back down into the black hole of apathy... i've lost any glimmer of respect i might have had for the majority of the people living in my country, and it's probably best just to slip back into the anonimity of the "unwashed masses"...

in short, i'm disgusted. and very, very depressed.